Update, Nov. 1: Binance now says the updated proof-of-reserves report is expected Monday, Nov. 2, not Tuesday. Read the latest.
Binance began reopening crypto withdrawals early Sunday, about three days after the Oct. 29 breach that the exchange puts at roughly $6.3 billion.
In its Recovery Update #4, posted just after midnight ET, Binance said phase one would roll out between 1 AM and 4 AM ET, with networks prioritized by the past week’s user demand. The Bitcoin network opened first, at about 1:20 AM ET. Ethereum and BNB Smart Chain (ETH, BNB, USDT and USDC) followed before 3 AM, then XRP and Base. By 7:36 AM ET, Binance listed 15 networks as live, also including Dogecoin, Optimism, Arbitrum, Tron, Solana, Polygon, Avalanche C-Chain, ZEC, TON and Sui. More assets will be added “in phases as security checks are completed,” it said, and users may see delays during the initial rollout.
The exchange also said it has now covered about 95% of the impacted amount, up from about 90% on Saturday. The remaining 5% is in less-liquid tokens outside its top ten, which it is still buying through market and OTC channels. Balances in BTC, ETH, USDT, BNB, SOL, USDC, XRP, USD1, RLUSD and ZEC are fully backed, it said. Deposits were not affected.
Withdrawals now come from newly generated hot wallets, which Binance said it has added to its proof-of-reserves page. That explains Sunday’s large on-chain transfers to unfamiliar addresses, which the company described as internal.
What is still pending: the full zero-knowledge proof for the Oct. 31 reserves snapshot, which Binance expects around Tuesday, and a post-incident report once the investigation ends. The FBI attributed the theft to North Korea’s TraderTraitor group on Saturday. Binance has not changed its figures of more than $6.34 billion set aside and about $3 billion frozen. It has said users will not bear the loss.
Markets were steady. At 7:47 AM ET, CoinGecko showed Bitcoin at $77,821 (+0.4% over 24 hours), Ether at $2,261 (+0.5%) and BNB at $712 (+1.0%).
Sources: Binance, FBI, CoinGecko